Analog communication systems are rapidly giving way to their digital counterparts. Digital television is currently scheduled to be available nationally. High-definition television (HDTV) broadcasts have already begun in most major cities on a limited basis. Similarly, the explosive growth of the Internet and the World Wide Web have resulted in a correlative growth in the increase of downloadable audio-visual files, such as MP3-formatted audio files, as well as other content.
Simultaneously with, and in part due to this rapid move to digital communications system, there have been significant advances in digital recording devices. Digital versatile disk (DVD) recorders, digital VHS video cassette recorders (D-VHS VCR), CD-ROM recorders (e.g., CD-R and CD-RW), MP3 recording devices, and hard disk-based recording units are but merely representative of the digital recording devices that are capable of producing high quality recordings and copies thereof, without the generational degradation (i.e., increased degradation between successive copies) known in the analog counterparts. The combination of movement towards digital communication systems and digital recording devices poses a concern to content providers such as the motion picture and music industries, who are reluctant to provide downloadable digital content due to fears of unauthorized and uncontrolled copying of such digital content.
In response, there is a movement to require service providers, such as terrestrial broadcast, cable and direct broadcast satellite (DBS) companies, and companies having Internet sites which provide downloadable content, to introduce copy protection schemes. These copy protection schemes may extend beyond the role of conditional access (CA), merely descrambling content to a CA-clear format for real-time viewing and/or listening, and now include constraints and conditions on the recording and playback. For example, currently, copying of scrambled content for subsequent descrambling and viewing or listening may be permitted with the appropriate service/content provider authorization or key provided to the digital device.
Traditional CA systems for Pay-TV originated from one-way broadcast systems where a back channel was not available. A cryptographic processor, such as a smart card, in a conditional access unit (e.g., a set-top box) is generally infused with information and functionality in order to automatically grant access to programs. For example, a smart card with a Pay-TV access control application is adapted to receive messages that grant certain service entitlements. If the set-top box was allowed to view IPPV programs, then credit and cost limit information was transmitted as well. Likewise, when tuning to a program, the smart card received messages that described which entitlements the smart card needed in order to grant access to the program.
Currently, hackers have manipulated both types of messages in order to view programs without paying the requisite subscription fees. Not only can these messages be manipulated, but the hardware can be attacked as well. For instance, descrambling keys in the clear that are used to descramble scrambled content can be copied and sent to other set-top boxes over the Internet. Such hacking is costly to both service providers as well as the content owners.